Before the Beginning
by madisonkara
Summary: Kara, my fanfic character and Nightcrawler meet in an awesome prequel that leads up to what happens in X2. DISCLAIMER! Some events in this story don't line up exactly with the fanfic I have already written, but STILL this is the prequel of it.


**_DISCLAIMER!  
__Kurt doesn't belong to me, but Kara DOES! There are some small parts of this story that comes from a comic book... that doesn't belong to me either... but everything else does!_**

_I didn't know what would happen to me. I ran away from my country home in Virginia, trying to escape the hatefullness of my town. I tried to live a new life in other places, but something always ruined that. I would always be found out, or someone would accuse me of being a mutant. They were right though.  
__I wandered far, and a for a long time. I came upon a town in Canada, where I stole food from a restaurant. The owner caught me and chased me a long ways. I hoped that soon I would find somewhere to rest in peace, somewhere o go away to forever._

It was snowing, and she was freezing. She had been walking for a long time after the last town. She had stolen food from a restaurant she had past; the owner chased her a long way. She settled down on an old log in the middle of a deserted forest. The snow was falling harder and turned into a blizzard. She was being pelted with snow, as she tried to find shelter under a tree. The harsh snow from the sky made her fall to the ground. She braced herself as chunks of snow kept pounding into her back. She grew out her smooth wings to shield herself from the snow. She finally made it to the base of the large fir tree. She put herself with her legs tucked under her chin and her back against the rough trunk. She started to drift to sleep, but she mentally slapped herself, trying to wake up. She knew that if she fell asleep now, she wouldn't wake up. She spent the next few hours walking from one side of the tree to keep herself warm and awake.  
As the snow finally slowed, she had become too exhausted to walk. She leaned up against the tree. She pricked her ears at a sound she was so sure of. It sounded like someone calling for help. She stood up straight and scanned the forest around her. The snow falling was still thick but she was positive she could she someone out in the snow.  
Her instincts told her she should try to help the poor soul in the snow, but her mind told her to avoid causing anything. She couldn't help but follow her instincts. She waddled out into the foot deep snow. She didn't realize the snow still blew so hard. She kept her wings up over her face and back. She made her way to where she thought she hear the person. "Hello?" she called out. "Is anyone out there?" her voice was almost smothered by the raging snow.  
She hear a moaning sound to her left. She kept on to where she thought it came from. "Hello? Are you there?" she continued to call. She trudged to a large bush. There she saw what looked like a person's leg. She plunged into the snow, furiously digging through to when came uncovered the person lying in the snow. It was a tall man, presumably in the military since he had the military uniform. She puled the man out of the snow, so she could see him well. She felt for his pulse, there was none. Nor was there breathing. She reached down his shirt, seeing if he had ID tags. None. The man was lifeless, and she was scared. She stood up and backed away from the body. She stood there, mourning, for the dead man and herself. But something didn't seem quite right. She had a feeling someone was watching her. She looked over her shoulder, and jumped. She saw someone running from a bush to a tree. She was even more scared.  
_ What if it's the people from the town.! What if they sent police or military after me?_!  
She glanced around again. There was no one there. She sniffed the air hoping to smell someone there, but the extreme cold dulled her sense of smell. She looked back to the man in the snow. Her emotions were confused. She was scared and depressed, but she had a sense of self gratitude, happy and surprised she had survived so long here.  
She walked to the body and sat down on one knee to keep her bottom out of the snow. She bowed her head in deep thought. She sat there a few minutes meditating.  
After about 5 minutes, she smelt something strange. She lifted up her head. Snow rammed it down again. Kara used her wings to shield her head once more. She lifted her head, and smelt the air. There was a surprising stillness. The snow had slowed to a light falling. She heard a noise but was unsure from where it came. She slowly stood up, carefully listening. She heard the noise again and again. Now she stood up straight and her wings rested to her back, still visible. She heard the noise to her far right. She stood still and listened. It all became a dead silence. Not even a bird or a squirrel scampering in the forest was heard. She looked to her right and left, then assured herself there was nothing to worry about.  
She was going to stood down to her resting position again, but stopped dead when she heard a sound she knew and feared. It was the cock of a gun, and she knew it came directly from behind her. She slowly turned, thinking of how she would get away from whoever had the gun. She turned her body halfway toward her back, and turned her head the rest of the way. There was a man. He looked like he was a military personnel like the one she presumed dead in the snow. He wore the same uniform, wore a helmet and had strange camo colored paint all over his face. He held a gun up to her face. She panicked inside, but remained composed outside.  
She started to turn to run to her left but 2 men emerged from a pack of bushes. Both carried guns, but the gun looked different first man's gun. She turned to the right and already there were two more men holding guns standing there, and she was sure there were some guarding her from behind.  
Thoughts raced through her mind. She thought of only one unguarded exit, and she knew she had to take it. She quickly, jumped up spread out her wings and flew up. The men were yelling and shooting at her. She dodged, narrowly escaping the bullets. She took her balance and flew one way, hoping to lose the men. She tried to fly higher but she quickly lost her strength and flew lower to the ground. The men had followed her. They kept on shooting at her. One had succeeded and shot her on her back. She fell from her flight, and landed hard in the snow. She tried to shake to unconsciousness form her. She awkwardly stood up, but fell the the ground in pain. She laid her head in the snow and blacked out.  
After probably only a minute, she woke up out of unconsciousness and shook herself off. She heard the men continuing to yell at each other. Some cursed. She pulled herself up to her knees, and lifted her head from the snow. The men had surrounded her. She bolted up and tried to make a break for the thick forest only 10 yards away from where she sat. One shot a stun gun at her. It missed once, but again it hit her on her shoulder. She fell forward, trying to keep herself from passing out again. She tried to act paralyzed so hopefully the soldiers would stop shooting at her. She lay on the soft snow, hunched over her legs. She pulled out the the stun darts from her shoulder, and tried to shale the on coming unconsciousness away. She waited till the soldiers let down their guns, then she jumped up trying to escape again. Unsuccessful. She was shot with the stun darts 5 times and she fell to the ground again. Kara tried to keep herself from passing out, but she couldn't. She was in a state of stunned sleep.

_ I knew I had gotten in deep. I had no clue what was in store for me; what would happen. I prayed to my silent god that I would be able to get out of the crap I was in._

Kara dreamt of times she had a long time ago, when her mom was still alive and she was happy. This was abruptly stopped when someone kicked her and yelled, "Wake up you damn mutant!" She awoke from her dreaming state, and looked up. There was a large man who again looked like he was in the military. He was covered in dirt, smeared on his face. He wore a mean look and had a glint in his eyes. He yelled at Kara again, "MOVE IT!"  
She wasn't sure what to do, so she scooted herself backwards, but the guard kicked her again. This time it sent her across the floor. She was rammed into a wall or something. She quickly stood up, leaning against the wall behind her for balance. Her breathing was irregular and offbeat. Her hands were tied behind her back and she had some sorta of metal collar around her neck.  
The man continued yelling at her "GET YOUR LAZY ASS OVER HERE, RIGHT NOW!" It sounded like he was trying to command a military training squad. She timidly approached the man, scared that he would hurt her again. He stood at least a foot taller than her. She shook from the cold that was still in her body. "Why haven't you been in your cell!" he said, still in a loud fierce voice. Kara couldn't speak. She was confused._  
What cell? Where am I? What happened?  
_ She stood there cowering in front of the massive man. He glared at her. "I SAID 'Why aren't you in your cell!'" the man repeated even louder.  
She continued shaking. She looked up at the man, "I... I don't... know.. where..." she said, but before she finished, the giant man raised up his arm and it landed it right across Kara's face. The force of his hand sent her to the ground three feet away. She yelped out in pain. She started crying. _  
Why is this happening? Why is this shit happening to me!  
_ She laid there, shaking and crying. The man strode to where she was and yelled some more. "GET UP! GET YOUR MUTANT ASS UP NOW!" She rolled up onto her legs and sat there and looked at him. She still had bright red eyes.  
_ I don't care what he does. It doesn't matter anymore. I need to die.  
_"Move! NOW!" he yelled again. She continued to sit there and just stare at him. The guard reared up the butt of his gun and jabbed it in her gut. She screamed out as she was sent to her back. She rolled onto her stomach and started to cough. She coughed blood. She looked at the man again. He reared his gun up again. She gathered herself ready for the strike. As the man had brought down the gun so close to her, she heard a loud stern voice yelling. "STOP!"  
She lay there in the fetal position, then looked up. She could barely see the man in the doorway, but she could tell that he was an older man about 5'5''. The guard that was beating her was standing up straight and looking at the man.  
_ Who the hell might this be?  
_She looked up again. The who stood at the doorway started walking toward her. She closed her eyes, fearing for what he'd do to her. The man started to yell something at the guard, but she couldn't understand him. Her head fell back onto the ground and she blacked out.  
She woke up in a dimly lit room. She moved her hands. They were still tied behind her back. She yanked on the handcuffs. They were too strong for her,... or was it she wasn't strong enough. What happened to her strength?  
_ Narg! Why can't I get these freakin handcuffs off! I know I'm strong enough to get 'em off!_  
She pulled at them a bit more, but was left still tight behind her back. She pushed her back against the wall behind her and she, using the wall as a support, stood up. Her legs still were shaking from the cold and from the fear she had of the guard who was beating her.  
"Where am I?" she said out loud.  
A door on one side of the room opened and a bright light poured in. This light was almost too much for Kara to handle, so she stepped back several steps into the darker side of the room. "You're at my experimental base, of course," a man said with a cocky attitude, as he walked into the room.  
_ Who the hell is this guy!  
_The man pulled out what seemed to be some kind of remote control, and just held it in his hand. "Who the hell are you?" Kara said, trying to remain composed enough to speak.  
"William Stryker. I've been testing the mutations of mutants that causes them to have those freakish powers. And that's what you're here for." the man said with somewhat of a sinister chuckle in his voice.  
Kara pulled at her handcuffs again. Still they won't budge. "Wha. wha... why are you doin' this?" Kara said with a shaky voice.  
She looked up at Stryker. A sly smile came across his face, and he walked into the small dim room. "Let's just say, there's going to be one less mutant to be dealt with in this world," he said.  
She wasn't sure of what he meant by that, but she was sure he was going to kill her. She screamed, "NO!" she yanked as hard as she could at the handcuffs which started to break. She pulled again with all her might and as she still screamed out the handcuffs broke free. She was full of rage at the man, and she growled. She jumped up and flew at him in a furious rage. Stryker quickly took his remote and punched a button.  
Whatever he pushed, it made the collar around her neck send a volt of electric shock throughout her body. She screamed and fell to the floor. "I would not recommend you doing that again," Stryker said. Kara tried to sit up. She felt the collar around her neck. She started to claw at it with her claws (the collar left her, unable to change _from_ her winged body).  
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Stryker said as he walked to Kara and stood above her. "You see, that inhibitor collar keeps you from using your mutant powers. And if you try to take it off,.." he started to chuckle, "it'll explode, still on your neck"  
Kara shook her head. "You're an animal..." she mustered enough strength to say. Her upper body went limp and fell to the ground. She blacked out.  
"NO... you're the animal.." Stryker said.

Kara awoke again. She was still in the small room; her containment cell. She struggled to stand up again, but after taking a minute to pull her self up, she awkwardly walked up and down the cell. It wasn't like an old fashioned jail cell. This one was a high-tech cell, that looked to be a difficult place to escape.  
_ This is so weird. What does that freak want with mutants anyway?_  
There were two small cots built into the wall on one side of the cell. At one end there was a door and the other end there's a small toilet and sink. Kara exhaustedly sat down on one of the cots and rubbed her head. There were 3 large whelps on her head. One on the side of her face, and the others on the top of her head, from when the guard hit her with the butt of the gun. She still shivered. Not from cold, just from the fear of what will happen to her in this nasty place.  
There was a small, ragged blanket wadded up on the foot of the cot she sat on. She took it and wrapped herself in it and laid down. Both the cot and blanket smelled nasty, but she ignored it. She just wanted to sleep.  
She had laid there for 2 hours at least, when the door slammed open. She bolted up from her rest, and saw in the doorway, Stryker and 2 guards; one guard was the one beating her when she first got there. She jumped out of her cot and with clenched teeth said, "What do you want with me?" She made her clawed fingers into fists.  
The guards held up some sort of gun at her. This didn't scare her. "Oh, just a little questioning. Alright with you?" Stryker said with sarcasm in his voice.  
"He-he,.. no," Kara replied with a smart-ass attitude. She stood up straight and tried to make herself look powerful, even though she was exhausted and weak for the time being.  
One guard held out his gun as he enter the cell. "Sit down!" he yelled at her.  
Kara winced at the thought of being shot with whatever type gun he had. She clenched her fists. "No." She said and braced for a hit.  
The guard was infuriated, and he pulled the trigger of the gun. Kara jumped to the side out of the way barely missed being hit. She landed against the wall, but held her balance. The guard continued shooting and she continued dodging, all the while Stryker pulled out his remote and pushed the button. A electric shock was once again sent throughout Kara's body. She fell to the ground. Pulling herself up and shook off the shock, she started a few steps toward Stryker. He pushed the button again, and Kara was sent the the ground. She screamed then groaned at the pain in her body.  
"Had enough?" Stryker said.  
Kara stood up and warily and unbalancedly stood there. She reached out at Stryker, and exhaustedly murmured, "No..." and he shocked her again. She fell to the floor and screamed. Stryker still stood there and smiled a cruel smile as she was screaming out. "Will you listen to me now? I have a few questions to ak you," he said. Kara shakily sat herself up on with her arms. She, exhausted and warily looked at him. "Good. Listen to me. Do you have any mutant abilities other than wings and claws?" he said and leaned against the wall, with the remote still in his hand.  
Kara sat herself on her bottom and glanced to Stryler and then to the floor and back. "What does it matter?" she muttered under her breath.  
Stryker scowled and walked to her showing her the remote and pulled her head up with her hair, making her look at his face. "If you cooperate, we will set you free. Understand?" he said through gritted teeth.  
Kara glared at him, her red eyes glared brightly, "Sure..."   
Stryker let go of her hair, and grinned, "Good, now answer the question."  
Kara hesitated a minute, trying to choose her words carefully, not telling him everything. "Well,.. lets see... I have wings, a tail and claws,.. what do you think I can do?" she said with a sarcastic tone.  
Stryker scowled at her again. "Ok, I'll play your game. You fly, can move things with your tail and you tear things apart with your claws,.. anything else?"  
"No.." she said gruffly.  
Stryker stood there a minute and was tired of her. He walked to the door and opened it. The two guards stood there with their arms crossed. They looked at Stryker for a command. Stryker nodded.  
The two guards came into the cell and one held out a gun at Kara. She backed up, and acted ready to fight, but she stood down as Stryker was in the doorway holding the remote with his finger on the button. Kara scowled and stood still; her arms down by her side and wings folded to her back. The guards quickly took her arms and tied them behind her back again. They also used a device to held down her wings and tail.  
_ What's the use? I can't beat them, and if I ever tried, he'd electrocute me. And god, that hurts so bad; it makes all the pain already in my body go to the maximum... I have to get out of here, but how?  
_ The guards led her to a room. It was a round shaped room, and there was a few file cabinets on the edge but there was a large empty space in the middle. They pushed her to the ground in the middle of the room. She sat there breathing hard from nervousness and anger. One guard still had his gun cocked at her but the other walked up to her. "Miss me?" he asked in a cruel tone. It was the guard that was beating her when she first woke there. She clenched her fists and teeth. She knew she had to control herself or she'd get hurt. Kara sat up on her knees and looked up at the man. Both continued mocking her. She unbalancedly stood up. The guard slapped her across the face and she fell to the ground on her back. "I didn't say you could get up, did I!" the guard yelled at her and they laughed at her.  
_ Ok! Now ya'll are gonna get it! Only one person will be leaving the room, and it's NOT gonna be ya'll!_  
This was all she could take. Manipulating her arms, she got them under her legs and in front of her. She stood up, and growled at the men. Again they laughed at her. "Oooooh, she's mad. I'm soo scared," one guard said while laughing. Kara knew she wouldn't be able to break apart the handcuffs or the thing holding down her wings. So she started to run at the first guard closest to her, screaming. The guard with the gun shot at her with the gun. It was a laser type gun. The first shot missed, then he shot at her again and hit her; she landed on the floor and yelped out in pain.  
_ Ok... stupid plan._  
The guard picked her up by her arm and threw her against the wall, with a loud thud. The other stood there and laughed. One guard took his gun, and the other some sort of club and they beat Kara to unconsciousness.

_ I couldn't take it anymore. I awoke in my cell to a great pain, all over my body. I imagined there were several bruises on my head, back and legs from where the guards beat me. I knew I would have to endure the pain since the inhibitor collar canceled out my healing power.  
The same thing happened again. Stryker asked me a question, and I wouldn't answer him, then the guards beat me. I knew I couldn't tell him the most biggest part of my gifts... then it seemed to be only a curse. It stayed like that for about a month. During that time I grew angry and stubborn and grumpy and vengeful. I wouldn't talk to anyone even though there was no one else in my cell. I always stayed in the dark corner of the room. I felt safe there, for some reason. I felt that Stryker was too afraid to beat me there since he couldn't see me.  
During that long month I was there, I learned how to easily get the handcuffs off, as well as the device that held my wings and tail bound. I knew there was no way to get out of my cell, but it was good to be able to move my hands and wings. Stryker told me something, about killing people. I didn't know what to do. He said he would let me kill the guards that beat me so much. And he said he'd turn off my inhibitor collar. I took him to his offer, playing along. I wasn't really going to kill anyone; I would use the collar being off to my advantage and try to get out. I tried; then I failed. And the thing that's killing me is I killed someone. It was an accident. It wasn't one of my guards; he might have been another prisoner, but nonetheless I killed him. I keep telling myself it was an accident, but I don't know. I just don't know.  
After being alone for such a long time, I didn't know how I would act if I ever got out and talked to someone on the outside. This all changed; amazingly it changed for the better for me._

Kara was in her corner, resting, when she heard a loud noise outside her cell. She perked her head up to listen. It sounded like there were a few guards struggling with someone. There was yelling and things banging against the walls. She heard a man call out for help. She chuckled to herself.  
_You won't be gettin' any help in this dump._  
She still listened in on what has happening. This was her entertainment. Sometimes the captive mutants, were released to be beaten or something they apparently didn't like, and the guards always struggled to keep them contained. She would laugh at the guards.  
The struggle outside her cell became a little bit louder, then she heard a scream and it was silenced.  
_Probably got shocked... poor guy._  
She put her head back on her knees, but pulled it up again when the her door open. She saw a guard outside, but couldn't really see him well, since the light coming in was so bright. She glared at the guard with her bright eyes. "Mutant 347, you have a new roommate. Meet Mutant 369" the guard said.(Kara's number in that place was 347- like there was a Mutant 14 or 12 or something in the movie)  
_ Super...sarcasm__  
_Kara continued to glare at the guard, as he seemed to just have tossed some person right into the cell. The guard stood there and laughed at them. Whether he was laughing at her or the guy on the floor, she was angered. Kara warningly growled at the guard and slanted her eyes at him. The guard slammed shut the door.  
Again the room was quiet, all except the man on the floor. He was groaning at his apparent pain. Kara carefully watched him from her corner. The man rolled over on his back, and slowly sat up. Kara looked at him.   
_ He looks weird, but I can't tell with this bad lighting. I hope he doesn't like to talk, cause he won't be gettin' any talkin' from me..._  
She watched his every move, as if just waiting for him to attack her. He pulled himself to one of the cots, and pulled himself to stand up. Upon standing he landed on the cot from fatigue. Kara put her head back on her knees and again was napping, holding her legs to her body tightly.  
Every little noise the man made, woke her, and she'd look over at the man who she couldn't tell if he was sleeping, but if he was, it wasn't a very good sleep. He tossed and turned, with a fear shaking all over him. She tried to ignore him, and fell asleep again.  
Later, she awoke to a sound again. It was the man, but he was awake. He stood at the door and was staring out the thick glass window at the top on the door. She looked at him. He wore a pair of baggy pants, but had no shirt. His back was bleeding a little bit, probably from the guards beating him. She continued studying the man from his side, but she couldn't see his face.  
_ I wonder what he looks like on his face..._  
She stared at him, but then a hate for people started to burn inside her.  
_ What the hell's what with me? I don't need anyone else. I'm fine by myself. But I 'm still wondering,.. how did this guy get captured... he doesn't look THAT powerful... Woah! What the hell is that?_  
She could have sworn she saw something small moving around near the ground beside the man. It was was too dark to clearly see.  
_ I must be seeing things again.  
_She rubbed her eyes and set her head back on her knees. She heard a noise right in front of her and she quickly bolted her head up.  
"Hallo?... Are you alright?" the man said with a German accent(haha! you thought this was Kurt didn't ya? DIDN'T YA?jumps up and down betcha ya didn't know I knew that you knew! bwuahahaha! and guess what... you're right it is mah Kurt- lol XD)  
_ Uhhg.. leave me alone.  
_ Kara tried to ignore him, but he kept standing there as if waiting for an answer. Kara groaned and mumbled, "Sure..." She put her head back on her knees in her arms, but still looked at the man through her fingers. He walked back to the cots and sat on the one nearest her. He looked at the door then back at her. "I am Kurt Vagner. Vhat ist your name?" he asked.  
Kara didn't want to answer him but she knew he would be persistent. "Kara," she said in a low voice.  
"Kara..." he said in a pondering voice."How long have you been here? "Kurt asked.  
_Too long..._

Being annoyed, Kara barked out, "What does it matter? You won't get released. No matter how many times he tells you you won't be freed. It won't happen no matter how many times you may try..." Kara finished, droning off in her rant, and she let her head fall to her knees again.  
"Who is he? Villain Stryker?" Kurt asked. Kara nodded with her head still on her knees. "He beat me too.." Kurt said. "I do not know vhat but something happened. How he lured me here... I just..I just do not know," Kurt said and hung his head, as if waiting for someone he loved to return.  
Kara had a slight kind streak, "You don't hav'ta talk about," she said in a soft voice.  
_But what the heck is he talking about?_  
Kurt looked over at Kara again; Kara had her head still on her knees. Both looked up when the door opened. Kurt stood up, but Kara just stared at him. "Sit down, freak!" he yelled at Kurt; he obeyed. That guard and another walked in. They walked to Kara. Stryker stood in the doorway. The soldiers took Kara by her arms, and she did not not want to be messed with.  
She screamed out, "LET ME GO!" and struggled with the guards. Stryker had an amused smile on his face. Kara pulled free of the guard, but he quickly grabbed hold of her arm again. "LET ME GO!" she screamed out again. She pulled with all her might away from the door and the guards pulled her as well, but they pulled her towards the door. Stryker was tired of watching this and he pushed the button that electrocuted Kara. She screamed out in pain, and her body fell limp.  
All of a sudden Kurt jumped up and yelled at the guards to stop. "Please! Stop this!" and he grabbed Kara's arm and tried to help her up. Her whole body was numb and she was fighting a faint.  
Stryker confronted Kurt. "Do you want the same thing that happened to her, happen to you?" Stryker threatened him. Kurt sat back down and watched at the men drag Kara out the door, with horror in his eyes.  
Kara tried to listen to what was happening around her but she blacked out, as soon as she was out of her cell. It seemed she only had been out for a minute, because when she woke, she was being drug down a hall. She painfully pulled her arm loose from the guard who was pulling her. Her upper body and head fell to the ground and she groaned at the pain from the concrete ground. She laid there and the guard yelled at her to get up. She could hardly move. He yanked her arm really hard and she flew towards him. She landed on the ground again. After being dragged down the hall a few more yards, she managed to stand up and limpingly followed the man.  
When they stopped they were at the room were she was interrogated and beat. The guard who pulled her was at least 2 times her size. He picked her up and threw her half way into the room. She landed on the ground close to the center of the room and pulled her head in close to her chest, in the fetal position.  
Stryker walked in the room and stood beside Kara, who still lied on the floor. He grinned, mocking her misery. He squatted down on the floor and asked her the usual question. "Now, tell me... do you have any other powers that you know of?"  
Kara shivered. She knew good and well that there was something she couldn't tell him. She DID have another power, she wasn't very sure of how to control it, but she knew she couldn't tell him. She had seen him abuse other mutant's power before; she would never forgive herself if she let him use her like that. She shook her head no, and started to softly cry.  
Stryker scowled at her and aggravatedly said, "I know you know something that I don't know, and you ARE going to tell me. If you don't, I will make sure the guards kill you this time."  
Kara rolled up onto her knees and lowered her head. She said, "You know, there is something you don't know. What you apparently don't know is... that I'm tired of all your damn shit that I've had to deal with since I've been here!" she said, somewhat happy with herself.   
Stryker growled out loud, tired of dealing with her, "Kill her," he ordered the guards. Both ran into the room. One pulled out and cocked a gun, the other had a spear-type thing. Kara jumped up, still warily, but her survival instincts started to take over. She bolted to the other side of the room. Right as she turned, the gun fired at her and the bullet seared through her shoulder. She screamed out and fell to the floor, breathing heavily. She used her other arm to pull herself to stand, groaning while she did as her her whole entire body was becoming numb. The guard with the gun shot at her again, this time hitting her in the leg. She screamed out again in horrible pain. She could barely move, and the guard with the spear thing casually walked to where she lay.  
Her eyes widened and she jumped to the side, missed being stabbed with the spear. The guard shot her with the gun again, twice. One hit her in the lower arm and the other in her side. In tears, she crawled away from the guard with the spear. He used the blunt end without a sharp tip and rammed it into her ribs. She groaned out in the pain. Everytime she breathed in, it hurt. She assumed the broken ribs punctured one of her lungs. She gasped for air and pulled herself away. The man with the spear again stabbed at her. He missed what he was aiming for, but he caught her on the leg right above the knee. Kara screamed even louder this time. She couldn't open her eyes but she forced them open. She looked at her legs and saw that the guard still held his spear in her leg. It was bleeding too much, to look at it. She took in a hard deep breath and felt her anger inside her. She tried to use her wings to hit the man away from her, but her pain swallowed up her anger. Tears streaming down her face she looked up at the guards. The one with the gun aimed it at her head. She noticed Stryker standing against the other wall, smiling evilly. She grimaced at the pain and her body was totally numb. She couldn't stand it anymore. She screamed out, "I will tell! I'll tell you!" she screamed out in pain again.   
Stryker apparently used the guards to torture the girl until she would break. And she did. "Stop!" he ordered the two guards. They pulled away. The one who had the spear pulled it from her leg and she groaned at the pain it caused as it ripped skin away from her leg. She felt too weak to do anything; her body fell to the ground, but still lay there, barely conscious.  
The guards walked back to the door and Stryker walked to where Kara laid. "Ok tell me. Tell me your other powers... and I will keep the guards from finishing you." he said with a smirk.  
Kara could hardly hear what he said, but knew what he would say. She rolled to her side and groaned at the pain as she moved her body. She took a painful breath in. She said in barely a whisper, "Will you let me go free, if I tell you?"  
She couldn't see what he did or any face he made but he said, "I will let you go if you tell me." He shifted his position and squatted down on the ground enough to hear her.  
"I don't know what it is..." Kara started and then coughed. It was blood. She continued to cough.  
"Tell me, dammit!" Stryker said in a hoarse and pissed off voice. He lurched forward threatening to hit her. She rolled over trying to escape even more pain. She tried to stop coughing, not really that successful, but hoarsely said, "Its.. its when I use my tail..." she was at a loss of breath and painfully took in a deep breath again. "Its hurts people... I don't know what it does..." she limply laid on the ground and winced at the pain of her whole body.  
"What does it do?" Stryker asked with a curios tone.  
"I don't know... It just hurts them... its a spike and... and they get hurt... I can't control it..." she yelled out in pain when Stryker rolled her over to force her to face him.  
"Are you lying to me, girl?" she gruffly said. Kara started to uncontrollably cough. She shakingly, shook her head. He pushed her away. "Good... good..." he said evily. "Guards!" The two guards came back into the room and they each grabbed one of her arms and brought her to her cell. After they unlocked her cell they pretty much threw her to the floor of the cell. She landed on her shoulder and lurched onto her side. She only had enough strength to moan at the pain. The guard slammed shut the door and walked away.  
Kara laid there for several minutes. She couldn't move. Her body was sore and numb. She slightly turned her head and moaned at the pain it caused her. She set her head on the floor. She tasted blood in her mouth and she felt blood, wet on her leg and shoulders and arms. The taste of the blood made her even more nauseous. She closed her eyes, trying to block out the pain; she fell unconscious.

_ Even as surprising as it sounds, I didn't die. It could've been dumb luck, but I think it was my very own angel who was watching over me. Imagine; an angel in that horrible place..._

Sometime later, Kara had come to consciousness, but she stayed sleeping. Though being several days since the last encounter with Stryker, her wounds still were there, since she couldn't use her healing powers. Kara finally opened her eyes. She was laying on her cot with blankets laying on top of her. She struggled to sit up. As she pushed herself up she realized there were strips of cloth wrapped around some places on her arm, used as make-shift bandages around her wounds. She looked around the cell. No one was on the other cot, but knew someone was in the room; she could hear their light breathing. She squinted her eyes at the door. There was a dark figure leaning against the wall, staring at the door's small opaque window. The same guy who was there before.  
She tried to get her breathing to calm, but as she was sitting up, it just made it even that more difficult to breathe. She let out a small moan and let her body fall back down to the cot. She closed her eyes, and heard some movement near her.   
_ What is this guy's name.. I can't remember... oh yes Kurt wasn't it?  
_ Kurt moved from his place by the door ad sat down on the cot beside Kara. She tried to open her eyes again, but she was too tired and exhausted. She carefully listened and imagined what and where he moved. She heard him settle down on his cot and it seemed he fell asleep. She soon too drifted to sleep.  
Later she opened her eyes at the sound of guards outside yelling out at the prisoners. All the lights turned out. They turned out the lights everynight at 7 o'clock.  
_ At least I know what time it is..._  
She kept her eyes closed and hoped to return to sleep. A movement's noise from beside her cot made her sit up and stare out to the black space. She had to blink her eyes several times to get her eyes from being blurry. She steadied her eyes at the place she could swear the noise came from. She saw there a pair of glowing yellow eyes. She jumped toward the wall away from whatever owned the eyes. She called out, "Go away! Leave me alone!" she felt a hand grab her wrist and she screamed at it. "No!" she struggled away from the person's grip, but it held strong.  
"Shhh... " the person said. "It ist me. Kurt Vagner. Do not scream." he said and let go of her arm. She held her eyes closed and opened them. She saw still the pair of golden eyes, but she saw no body to them. She had very good nocturnal eyes, that she could see better at night than daytime, yet she could not see anything of Kurt except his eyes.  
"What?" she said in a dumbfoundedness. She thought she was just dreaming.  
_There's noone here! I'm just seeing thing... grr stupid dreaming... eyes...nng... ahh!_  
She heard no response se she was sure she was dreaming,...  
_But I what I heard! Is there..._  
She reached out to see if there was really someone there. Her hand shock back when she felt a warm body in front of her. She closed her eyes, trying to gather herself. "Kurt?... Are you there?" she asked, just to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.  
_ Ok... I didn't imagine THAT...  
_She was still feeling insecure about her unsureness(I just made that up- - so sue me) . She sat there, staring into the gold eyes she saw before her... the ONLY thing she could see.  
And they stood unblinking until she heard a man's voice say, "You need to get some sleep, Kara. It vill help your body to heal."  
Kara laid down and stared up, trying to organize her thoughts. She felt him pull over another small blanket and she looked over at where he stood. She no longer saw his eyes, so she was clueless to where in the cell he was. Her eyes warily drooped closed and she drifted off to sleep.

_ And even angels come in strange shapes, sizes... and colors..._

The next day, Kara awoke, but her eyes could not see. Being used to this, from being hurt so much, she ignored it. She closed her eyes and listened in to figure out if Kurt was still in her cell. She heard a soft whisper, but she couldn't understand what was said. It was German whispers, and she hadn't taken any language classes in years. The only word she heard and knew its meaning was "Gott"(meaning "God" in German). She again opened her eyes and slowly her eyesight come to, but everything was dark and blurry. She sat up her head and saw a shadowed figure sitting at the foot of her small cot. Her whole body was numb and extremely sore. She started to say something but an extreme thirst kept her from speaking and started to cause pain in her throat and chest. When _was_ the last time she had something to drink? Too long, that's for sure.  
She made a small grunting noise as she blacked out but remained conscious, so she knew what was going on around her. She reached out her hand to get Kurt's attention and said in a dry, raspy voice, "Kurt... please. I'm thirsty..." She gasped in surprise when she felt a hand grab hers. Her body was numb, but she could tell he had a soft, gentle way of holding her, even if it was just her hand.  
"Let me help you. Try to sit up," Kurt said as he grabbed her arm and helped her to a sitting position. Kara's body was limb and she couldn't hold herself up straight by herself. Kurt pulled her arm over his neck and helped her stand with her body leaning against his. He carried Kara over to the small sink in the corner of the cell and he turned on the water.  
Kara mumbled something that he couldn't understand. _Its probably filled with pollution and smells badly... at least it's water...  
_ She couldn't hold her hand steady enough to keep water in it, so Kurt very gently cupped her hand in his, filled it with water, and with water dripping down both of their arms, he held her hand up for her to drink. Over and over a few more times, she slurped up water from her hand, but she still was hardly awake. Her eyes remained closed and her body remained limp.  
Once again, Kurt brought up their hands for her to drink, but now she was starting to open her eyes. Kara slowly opened her eyes glancing to her side and finally focussing on her own hand. She gasped at what she'd seen. From being in the dark so long(literally) she had never seen how Kurt had truly looked like. Kara's eyes widened as seeing his blue skinned, 3-fingered hand. She gasped again and her eyes slowly went up his arm and met his golden eyes. She felt a wave of fear go through her body; she wasn't even sure why. Why should she be afraid of him? Her true form looked just as horrible. She felt a burst of strength go through her body as well, and she violently pulled away from Kurt's grip. She automatically fell over her heels, backwards. She yelped out as she had several flashes of memories and emotions when it all stopped. She looked to the ground and her face was only inches away from the cold hard floor. She positioned herself to look up and saw Kurt holding her at her waist, keeping her from falling. She had an uncomfortable feeling, and she wrenched herself loose from his hold, and she flew straight, face first into the floor. Black.

_ God,... if there is a god... please help me... I have nothing left and I need someone... someone to keep me whole and someone to love me... why is Kurt being so nice to me?... am I that pathetic that he's doing these things for me? Do I even deserve him to keep me alive? I don't need life anymore... God, please help me..._

Kara awoke, not too long later, in her cot with a sharp pain in the side of her head. She couldn't move it much, but she slightly lifted her head up, and right beside her bed, there Kurt stood. She looked into his face and saw concern and a touch of love in his gold eyes. She groaned at the pain in her head and closed her eyes again. She listened as closely as she could to see what Kurt would do. He softly said, "Shhhh... it vill be alright. It's okay," and she felt him stroke her cheek.  
_ Why is he doing this? Does he.. like me? ... NO! I will not let him get to me like this._  
She shook her head, but her sensitive thinking took over her mind.  
_ But this means he LIKES me... no one has even wanted to get close enough to touch me since mom... maybe I should listen to him... maybe he'll listen to me... who knows..._ _I never believed Kurt would even cared enough to look at me. But he helped me stay well and he comforted me in my pain... physical AND emotional pain. I kept telling myself that this couldn't be real enough to happen to me, but it was, and is happened. I was, for the first time in the longest time, feeling loved by someone. How ironic, that I felt better than I had in years at my home, yet I was in a nasty prison, where I was beat and hurt so badly by that horrible manStryker.  
After around a month, most of wounds were healed and I didn't feel pain anymore. I had gotten to know Kurt so well. He told me about how he was lured here. He said what he thought was someone he loved. was just an illusion to bring him in. I told him about how badly I had it at my used-to-be home. How my own father chased me away. I tried to keep my mind off of those painful memories.  
As I finally started to feel better about myself and my mutant powers, it all. was put against me and I could hardly keep my sanity._  
Kara sat on her cot, bored, watching Kurt take a small nap against the wall. She was deep in thought about him. Did he really love her? Would he still care for her if they ever escaped? All these thoughts passed through her mind, then she jerked her head up at a loud noise from the hallway.  
The door to their cell was unlocked and two guards walked in. She stood up defensively, and Kurt jumped up and stood beside her. Stryker appeared at the doorway and said, "Take them both. It's time."  
They panically looked at each other then tried to fight the guards. The first dragged Kara from the room. "Kara!" Kurt called out, then pulled away from the guard, but ceased any struggle against the guards.  
Stryker had a sinister look on his face then said, "Don't worry, Wagner. You'll see her again. Very soon." and with that the guard led Kurt down the hallway.  
The guard struggled against Kara's energy. Since she had been sick, her strength had built up and she could have taken him on by herself. The guard hit her across the face and she yelped out, feeling her sense of calmness and strength drain from her, she stood unmoving before the guard. The guard pushed her into a room she had never been in before. It somewhat looked like an operation room with massagist chairs. Stryker walked in followed by the other guard who pushed along Kurt. Kurt looked at her with a deep sadness on his face. "Kurt..." she said softly.  
After he was forced to sit on the ground, Kurt said, "Kara, I just vant to say I love you and I promise nothing vould ever make me feel any different."  
Stryker snuffed at him and said, "How touching. He looked over at Kara's guard and he pulled her arms behind her back to where she couldn't even move them. The guard forced her onto the massage-looking chair. She pushed him away from her yet he kept his hold on her. Stryker pulled out and quickly and carefully prepared a tube that had a long needle on the end of it. As Kurt saw this he jumped up, "Kara!" but the guard quickly held him down.  
It was done. Kara's body became limp and unmoving. Kurt's eyes, curiously looked over to her. Now Stryker came over to him. "Your turn."  
Kurt stood unmoving and quiet, with angry and resistant eyes fixed on Kara.  
Styker smirked and said, "And you'll get the same thing. I'll inject you with this brain controlling solution and I will make sure you do exactly what I want you to do."  
He still stood in his spot and remained quiet, now holding sorrow and still anger on his face.  
Stryker chuckled evily and simply said, "And I will make SURE you kill them." Kurt's face took a sudden downward slide to looking like someone had stabbed him right in the chest.  
When Stryker had him ready, and Kurt was already in the chair, and he hadn't said a word. "You are silent, Wagner. No witty remarks?" Stryker laughed and as he injected Kurt, tears fell and everything was silent.

_ I don't even remember what happened. It all happened out of my control. Stryker told me to kill someone and I couldn't keep myself from it._  
Now mind controlled Kara and Kurt stood before Stryker in absolute absent-mindedness. He gave the two their orders and removed the inhibitor collars from their necks.They were sent to attack poker players at a bar in a nearby village.  
_ I don't know if it was just my healing factor or some damn self-will, but my bit of mind control wore off. And as lucky as I was, I felt like I had killed my own soul because I left him behind._  
As the two mind-controlled mutants approached the bar, Kara suddenly stopped and was left behind by Kurt. She closed her eyes and she felt her self-control return to her. _What the heck! Where are-... Kurt!_ Her memories hit her like a wall and she suddenly realized what had happened. She flew as fast as she could to catch up with Kurt's teleporting. She finally stopped and reached him as he stood on the outside, in the back of the bar. "Kurt?..." she pulled him to look into her face, but when she looked into his eyes, they were blank and no longer held the loving kindness that once was there. She stepped away from Kurt and started to run away. She turned and had the last look of him and whispered with tears, silently falling down her face, "I love you, Kurt..." and she disappeared into the woods.  
_ None of this, I can remember. The professor said he repressed my memories to where I wouldn't feel the extreme emotional pain as I had then. But still a part of me, feels as though I've know Kurt longer than I've know myself._  
At Stryker's base, he returned, still with no mind of his own to had controlled his horrible actions. Kurt again stood before Stryker. Stryker laughed and ranted, then finally giving him his final assignment, "...you will pay a little visit to the President of the United States..."**  
**


End file.
